Get Involved

The Bicentennial is a once-in-a-lifetime celebration, and we want you to be part of history! Check out ways you can be involved whether you live near or far – from social media to on-campus activities – and help us spread the word and showcase the great impact of our university.

Bicentennial Champion Checklist

Do you love all things #Bearcats? Become a UC Champion and share the latest UC news and information on social networks like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Bicentennial Champions are charged with engaging with alumni, faculty, students, parents and fans on social media through our Elevate UC platform.

Show your support by making a gift to the UC Bicentennial Fund during the Bicentennial year. Gifts of $1819 to the Bicentennial Fund are eligible for special benefits. Give now.

Take a virtual tour of campus, peruse our social media feed, take and share selfies, and play BearCatch, an augmented reality game. Available for iOS and Droid.

Dinner with Bearcats is an opportunity for UC alumni to host UC students for an evening of networking and socializing. Alumni interact with UC students and learn about the current student experience at UC while sharing their own stories.

Walk through UC’s history through a series of immersive virtual reality experiences developed by UC’s own Center for Simulations and Virtual Environments Research. A truly student-centered effort, the VR installations feature the work, from concept to completion, of students from the College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning; the College of Education, Criminal Justice and Human Services’ School of Information Technologies; The College of Engineering and Applied Science; and the Lindner College of Business. The virtual reality booth design and coordination was directed by UC’s Office of Planning + Design + Construction with participation from students of the College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning.

Beginning in late January, three permanent virtual reality stations will be located in University Pavilion, Tangeman University Center (TUC), and CARE/Crawley. During the Bicentennial year, a mobile station will travel to UC Blue Ash, UC Clermont, and the Rec Center. Download the UC Mobile App for specific hours at each location.

The participant is whisked through time to April 9, 1959, to appear in the laboratory of Dr. Albert Sabin, the inventor of the oral-polio vaccine. Dr. Sabin asks for assistance with experiments in order to advance the distribution of the miracle-cure, including identifying the polio virus through a microscope and preparing sugar cubes for the “Sabin Sundays” vaccination events with children. This vignette commends the ingenuity of Bearcats through all eras of UC – and foreshadows additional great breakthroughs in science by UC students and staff for years to come.

Living, Learning, Leading

The classroom is the iconic location of learning, and not only has the classroom experience changed over the university’s 200 years, so have the students and faculty. In this vignette, the participant becomes a student at the University of Cincinnati in 1819, 1919, 2019 and experiences the evolution of pedagogies and classroom technologies, as well as the changing composition of the student body. The user can celebrate the broadly diverse student body in 2019 and experience the shift from a faculty-centered learning environment in 1819 to the fully student-centered approach of modern learning pedagogies in 2019.

Bearcat Spirit

Since the adoption of the “Baehr-Cat” in 1914, the Bearcat mascot has been a symbol of pride and accomplishment as Bold Bearcats forge new futures at the University of Cincinnati. In this vignette, the participant becomes the Bearcat in the fall of 1924 when the James Gamble Nippert Memorial Stadium opens for the first time. The Bearcat pumps up the crowd before the big game, and participates in a variety of scenes to cheer UC students, faculty, staff as they boldly serve the Cincinnati community, the region, and the world.

Diversity & Inclusion: An Ecosystem of Inclusion

Meet alumna Marian Spencer, a lifelong champion of civil rights and the first African American woman to be elected to the Cincinnati City Council. The participant learns more about Marian’s experience as a young black student at a still-segregated campus in 1939, and works with her to construct a vibrant exhibit that recalls the university’s civil rights history and commemorates the struggle to create a modern ecosystem of equity and inclusion in 2019 and beyond.

Campus on the Move

Evoking the joy a child feels playing with a miniature model train set, see the evolution of the University of Cincinnati’s campus in miniature, celebrating the different styles and architectures through the ages. In each model year, the user can pick up and play with “toy” cars, trees, and other period appropriate models and details, while learning more about the history of the UC’s award-winning campus architecture as we dial through the past, present, futur

Show your Bicentennial spirit by following us on social media, tagging your posts with #BoldlyBearcat or #200UC, and posting to your own social media channels with FlatCat. Be sure to visit all of the local restaurants participating in Bicentennial Bites

Grab your friends, recruit your fellow alumni, tell your neighbors…and spread the word about 200 years of impact and the future of what’s next at UC!

Bicentennial Bites

In celebration of the Bicentennial, UC will partner with select Cincinnati restaurants to provide a special deal or commemorative UC themed menu item. When you purchase the specialty item, a portion of the proceeds will come back to UC to support scholarships.